No. 24 Buffs Host Kansas To Close Homestand

BOULDER — The No. 24 Colorado Buffaloes soccer team looks to build on its top-10 victory when it hosts Kansas on Sunday, Oct. 11, at Prentup Field.

The Buffaloes (9-3-1, 3-2-0 Big 12) enter one point behind the Jayhawks (9-3-1, 3-1-1 Big 12) in the conference standings. Both teams earned shutout victories Thursday, with Colorado defeating No. 7 Baylor 3-0 and Kansas winning 2-0 at Kansas State.

Colorado's victory over Baylor established a program record with its 14th consecutive home win, surpassing the 13-match streak across the 2003-04 seasons. The Buffs are 8-0-0 at Prentup this season, outscoring opponents 27-3 and scoring at least twice in every home match.

Head coach Danny Sanchez was already looking toward Sunday following Thursday's victory, emphasizing the challenge Kansas presents and the importance of another strong home crowd.

"We need this crowd for Kansas. Kansas is a very good team," Sanchez said. "So we're going to have to be on the top of our game on Sunday."

The Jayhawks have won three of their last four matches, recording shutouts in all three victories. Their lone loss during that stretch came at Baylor, where Sanchez noted that Kansas controlled play for extended stretches despite the 3-1 result.

Midfielder Jillian Gregorski leads Kansas with seven goals and 14 points, along with 53 shots and 23 shots on goal. Defender Caroline Castans adds five goals and three assists, while Livvy Moore leads the Jayhawks with 10 assists. Limiting the service to Gregorski will be one part of Colorado's challenge against an attack with production coming from several positions.

Kansas has been especially productive after halftime, scoring 20 of its 27 goals in the second half while allowing just four. Jordan Rowan and Jocelyn Herrema scored in the 50th and 66th minutes against Kansas State, continuing a pattern that will test Colorado's ability to maintain its defensive standard throughout the match.

At the other end, goalkeeper Sophie Dawe owns a 0.69 goals-against average, 29 saves and a .763 save percentage. She has recorded six solo shutouts and shared another, helping Kansas limit opponents to nine goals through 13 matches.

Sunday marks the teams' first meeting since Kansas defeated Colorado 2-1 in the 2025 Big 12 Tournament semifinals. The Buffs won the regular-season meeting 2-1 in Lawrence and hold an 11-9-1 advantage in the series, including a 5-4-0 record at home. CU won the last meeting in Boulder, 1-0, in 2024.

KEEPING PRENTUP ROLLING

Colorado brings its own defensive consistency into Sunday after recording its eighth shutout of the season against Baylor, surpassing its total from the entire 24-match 2025 campaign. The Buffs have held Iowa State, West Virginia and Baylor scoreless through their first five conference matches.

Freshman goalkeeper Brooke Goerish made six saves Thursday to earn her fifth solo shutout. She enters Sunday with 44 saves, a 0.69 goals-against average and a .863 save percentage. Sanchez credited both Goerish and the defenders in front of her for Thursday's performance.

"She was great tonight," Sanchez said. "And the back four were fantastic."

Colorado's midfield also contributed on both sides of the ball. Reagan Kotschau assisted on both of Hope Leyba's goals against Baylor, bringing her team-leading totals to eight assists and 22 points. Sloane Phillips added her third assist of the season, helping set up Jace Holley's second-half goal.

Leyba leads the Buffs with nine goals and enters Sunday one from tying Nikki Marshall for second in Colorado history. Her brace against Baylor moved her past Taylor Kornieck into sole possession of third with 41 career goals. She also established the program's career shots-on-goal record Thursday, reaching 131 to surpass Shyra James' 130.

Holley's return gives Colorado another proven scorer alongside Leyba, Kotschau and Michaela McGowan, who has five goals this season. In her fourth appearance since returning from injury, Holley supplied her first goal and assist of the season against Baylor.

"I thought she gave us a real spark," Sanchez said. "This is a good stepping stone tonight."

UP NEXT: Sunday is the Buffs' final home match before a three-game road stretch at Kansas State, Arizona and Arizona State. Colorado returns to Prentup Field against Cincinnati on Friday, Oct. 30. Tickets for Colorado's matchup with Kansas on Sunday, Oct. 11, at 1 p.m. MT are available here.

SOCIALS: For more information on Colorado Soccer, please visit cubuffs.com/soccer. Fans of the Buffs can follow @cubuffssoccer on Instagram, X, TikTok and Facebook.

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Players Mentioned

Brooke Goerish

Jace Holley

Reagan Kotschau

Hope Leyba

Michaela McGowan

Sloane Phillips

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Upcoming Events

Upcoming Event: Soccer versus Kansas on Oct 11, 2026 at 1 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Soccer at Kansas State on Oct 16, 2026 at 5:30 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Soccer at Arizona on Oct 22, 2026 at 8 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Soccer at Arizona State on Oct 25, 2026 at 2 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Soccer versus Cincinnati on Oct 30, 2026 at 7 p.m.

Upcoming Event: Soccer versus Oklahoma State on Nov 5, 2026 at 7 p.m.

Results

Completed Event: Soccer versus Baylor on October 8, 2026 , Win , 3, to, 0

Completed Event: Soccer at UCF on October 2, 2026 , Loss , 0, to, 2

Completed Event: Soccer at Texas Tech on September 27, 2026 , Loss , 1, to, 3

Completed Event: Soccer versus West Virginia on September 24, 2026 , Win , 2, to, 0

Completed Event: Soccer at Iowa State on September 17, 2026 , Win , 1, to, 0

Completed Event: Soccer versus Denver on September 11, 2026 , Win , 6, to, 0

Completed Event: Soccer versus Utah State on September 6, 2026 , Win , 2, to, 0

Completed Event: Soccer versus New Mexico on September 3, 2026 , Win , 3, to, 0